Feature

Careers for Girls:
Living the Future Today

By Janee Mitchell - Feature Writer

Girls in the sixth, seventh or eighth grades who are looking towards careers in science and technology are invited to attend the “Expanding Your Horizons in Math, Technology and Science” workshop on March 12. Parents and educators are also welcome to attend the conference.
As stated on the American Association of University Women website, “some of the most important, exciting and high paying careers in the coming decades will be in math, science and technology, and these fields are wide open for young women.”
The website further explains that there are twenty interactive workshops to be held during this annual careers for girls conference. The girls will be armed with the skills necessary to gain future jobs in the areas of math, science and technology.
The career workshops for the “Expanding Your Horizons in Math, Science and Technology” conference will be held in the PAC March 12 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. It will cover such topics as web page creation, defying gravity, tell it like it is, your future and healthcare of the future.
Adult workshops have also been designed for the educators, guardians and parents such as choosing high school courses to keep options open for college and financing a college education. The adult workshop will also be held on March 12.
As stated in a UIS press release, there may be scholarships available at the conference and the cost to register for the conference is $15. A registration form, overview of the program and workshop listing is available online at www.aauw-il.org/springfield.
The workshops will be led by professionals working in the area of interest who, according to a press release, must be successful professionals who will discuss the educational skills needed for the job, different duties the job entails and their reason for choosing the job.
The Sangamon County Rescue Squad K-9 Team will also give a special presentation throughout the conference that will show the conference goers the importance of police dogs in everyday life and how they often aid in rescues.

Carol Rahn named February Employee of the Month

By Jason Satek - SGA/General Assignment Reporter

Carol Rahn loves what she does, and it must show as she was named UIS Employee of the Month for February. The Assistant to Dean of Library Jane Treadwell, Carol also works for Farokh Eslahi, the director of Educational Technology and has been center stage to the melding of the two, as the library becomes increasingly computer orientated.
“We are spending much more on databases,” she said, “because people want more on-line services. It’s limitless what’s available on-line. I think our library has a lot to offer.” On that note, Carol also relayed that the library computers are open to the public, and Treadwell has recently received a grant to study the feasibility of bringing a branch of the Illinois Public Library system into the Brookens Library to increase public access and connection to the community. A decision on this proposal might come as soon as the end of the year.
Given her position, Carol has a large involvement with the Banner Internet system, “Up to my nose,” she says, laughing. Having been on campus long enough to remember the predecessor University Financial Accounting System or UFAS, she looks at the changes philosophically. “We needed to make a change. It’s just been fairly painful, as any computer changes are. UFAS only did certain segments. It didn’t talk to the student system and it didn’t talk to the Human Resources payroll system. This system is completely integrated.”
Carol finds herself using computer systems to monitor the 20 financial accounts she is responsible for spread over the areas of state funds, grants and gifts. What is the estimated total dollar amount for her budgeted accounts? “Three million dollars,” she replies. “I like accounting. Everything has to balance. The whole world should take accounting.”
Rahn has been at UIS since 1999, having left a position as a computer and accounting teacher for Ashland Chandlerville Central High School. She graduated from Illinois State with a degree in Business Education.
In a slightly ironic twist, she found her current position listed in a newspaper ad, and not online. She and her husband Darrell have a daughter and a son, who will become a first time father in May and make her a first time grandmother.
Carol does not have any specific plans for the gift certificate that accompanies the Employee of the Month award, though she suspects it will largely end up at the school cafeteria, whose cuisine she is quite fond of. The best perk might end up being the designated parking place, which could ease the two hour round trip work commute she performs. Yet Carol states that other coworkers have a similar drives, and when asked to name her most difficult employment aspect, it doesn’t come up. “The volume of what we are doing is the toughest part of the job,” she says, “but it’s a great place to work. The day keeps moving.”

Careers for girls:

Carol Rahn named February Employee of the Month